Into the Depths of our Hearts
by Secretself
Summary: Aislinn, a young girl of 16 meets a reincarnated Chrno one night and is thrust into his world. Chrno remembers nothing but names from his past life and Aislinn must help him regain his identity while slowly, without knowing it, falling for him.


Disclaimer: I do NOT own Chrno Crusade.

Okay, you can't really tell this is Chrno Crusade until next chapter but still... --

This will be the first fan-fiction I've shown to anyone other than my closest friends.

Please review and tell me about any grammatical mistakes I might have made. Thank you very much!

A biting wind forced it's way through the city, pushing against buildings, cars, and bodies. The wind was like ice, vying to steal the warmth of the people shuffling urgently through New York's streets. The city's gray buildings loomed over the streets, almost completely blocking out the sun which hung lazily in the sky above. Clouds were already rolling towards New York, blown in by the east wind.

People shivered as the wind, a sign of the coming winter, bit into their skin, slipping right through their clothing. Bundled children padded along happily behind sulky parents, whose demeanor matched that of the city buildings. Stray cats huddled in allies that smelled of smoke and garbage, huddled up against one another. Even those whose birthdays were fast approaching could not escape the gloom and cold of the city streets.

Aislinn was one of those people, whose birthdays were not far away, awaiting on the horizon. She was excited of course, but also cold and slightly damp. She knew that playing with the children from the orphanage too long wasn't the best of ideas, but how could she help it? The children whose families were no longer there to protect them, the children who received love from only the nuns at the orphanage and from complete strangers on occasion.

Although Aislinn knew she would be scolded severely upon returning to her own "home" she loved the children too much to care. They were her friends, her family, and also kindred spirits. Yes, Aislinn herself has been an orphan, who lived in that very same building which she has visited just minutes ago.

They say no one can let go of their past, no matter how much they try. How true, Aislinn could not forget her time spent in the orphanage, with the nuns of the Magdalene Order and now she was tempted to return there. It hurt very much. She could feel her heart clench tightly at the very thought of the cold, stone building. She could not escape however.

Maybe it was because pain was welcomed compared to the life she led at "home". When she was with her "family" everything had it's own gray tinge to it, not as with the city, but more like a blur, a numbed feeling. Everything about her life at "home" has a fakeness, a lack of reality that she so dreaded. And so she went to the orphanage to pinch herself, as though to wake up from a dream.

Aislinn shuddered. Not from the wind as much as from the thought of returning to the apartment that was her humble abode. She hated it there. The family with which she had lived for the past four years was rich and snobby, and, of course, acted as though the were better than everyone. How cold. Colder than even the wind she was forced to endure each day as she did the family's shopping and other tedious errands. Aislinn sighed, picking up her pace and wondering how bad the scolding that she would receive would be.

Aislinn's punishment was bad. She hadn't thought there was anything worse that going shopping in the cold. But then, she had at least been able to visit the orphanage. Now, she wouldn't even be able to leave the city apartment! Fair was apparently not in her "family's" vocabulary. Her "father" had even gotten mad enough to hit her across the face. His hand had left a huge red welt on her snow-white face which she now tenderly rubbed.

The room Aislinn sat in was as luxurious as the rest of the house, with light blue walls, a mahogany desk, a matching bed with blue sheets and a goose feather, down duvet. She even had a ornately carved end table upon which stood a intricate looking lamp with a blue shade. Her room was pretty, made for a young, overly-pampered girl with kind and caring parents. Ha! Even though she was a "young girl" she felt very out-of-place in her room.

Night was fast approaching and her room was closed off from fresh air, the warmth from the heater blasting her with an oppressive wind. Aislinn clenched her fists. It was getting _**very**_ hot and she felt like she was suffocating. Although she knew she might catch a cold, Aislinn got up from her expensive desk and ran over to the huge window on the wall opposite the door and pulled back the curtains (which were blue of course).

Pale hand reaching for the latch, Aislinn leaned closer to the glass of the huge window, which was as over done as everything else in the apartment. Placing her hand on the latch, she let the spot on her face where her "father" had slapped her press against the glass which she knew would be like ice. What Aislinn didn't expect was the face on the other side of the glass.

There was indeed someone else on the other side of the glass! How Aislinn wished she had closed her eyes when she'd leaned in to the glass. Letting out a small yelp, she jumped back in fright. Aislinn wasn't weak enough to faint but she did fall back, landing painfully on the hardwood flooring. She stared at the person floating on the other side of the window in fear, which soon grew to be amazement, then wonder. The figure's deathly handsome face displayed the same emotions as they stared at each other.


End file.
